Feeling behind in your business—or like you’re trying to do all the things with zero spoons? In this episode, I walk you through the 5 stages of the Sustainable CEO Pathway and help you figure out what season you're really in (and why that matters more than hitting 6 figures fast).

We’ll unpack what sustainable success actually looks like for entrepreneurs with chronic illness and unpredictable energy—and how to stop trying to leap ahead to passive income before you're ready.

💡 In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• The #1 reason so many of us stall out (and why it's not laziness)

• How to shift from guilt to grace when progress feels slow

• Four common mindset traps that keep you stuck

• A practical way to assess what your business actually needs next

Whether you're in Survive or heading toward Thrive, this episode will help you honor your capacity and build something that lasts.

🛠️ Resources & Links

➡️ Follow my journey on YouTube for behind-the-scenes insights. (@chronicillnessceo) ➡️ Need personalized support? Book a Sustainable CEO Strategy Day and let’s design a business that works with your body, not against it. ➡️ Learn more about the Sustainable Success Framework at ChronicIllnessCEO.com to start building your energy-conscious business today.

And if this message resonates with you, please leave a rating and review—it helps other entrepreneurs with chronic illness find this podcast and join our cozy community.

📬 Stay Cozy & Connected

Want weekly encouragement in your inbox? Subscribe to the CICEO Newsletter for behind-the-scenes stories, podcast insights, and business strategy—served cozy, not corporate.

Wishing you a gentle day, Jessica

Have you ever felt stuck in a business model that everyone else seems to love—but it's slowly draining you? In this episode, Jessica gets real about why popular income strategies often fail entrepreneurs with chronic illness. You'll learn the three most sustainable revenue models for unpredictable energy, how to align your income with your health needs, and why the best business model is the one that honors your body right now.

💡 In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• Why some business models feel like a trap when you're managing chronic illness

• The top 3 sustainable revenue models for fluctuating energy

• How to apply the Right Strategy, Right Time™ framework to your business model

• Why “passive income” is often a myth—and how to make it truly sustainable

• How to transition (or combine) models as your health and goals evolve

✍️ Gentle Reflection Prompt

Wondering which business model actually fits your life? Try this: Do a "Model Match Assessment. Create 3 columns—one for each model:

1. List how it aligns with your current energy

2. What support systems you'd need

3. How it emotionally feels to picture working in that model. Let your body guide you before your brain kicks in.

You don’t need the ‘best’ business model—you need the right one for you, in this season, with this body.

🔗 Mentioned Episodes

• Episode 5: Tired of Just Surviving? How to Build a Business That Lets You Thrive
• Episode 6: How to Know If You’re Making the Right Business Decision—Especially When You Have Chronic Illness

🛠️ Resources & Links

➡️ Follow my journey on YouTube for behind-the-scenes insights. (@chronicillnessceo) ➡️ Need personalized support? Book a Sustainable CEO Strategy Day and let’s design a business that works with your body, not against it. ➡️ Learn more about the Sustainable Success Framework at ChronicIllnessCEO.com to start building your energy-conscious business today.

And if this message resonates with you, please leave a rating and review—it helps other entrepreneurs with chronic illness find this podcast and join our cozy community.

📬 Stay Cozy & Connected

Want weekly encouragement in your inbox? Subscribe to the CICEO Newsletter for behind-the-scenes stories, podcast insights, and business strategy—served cozy, not corporate.

Wishing you a gentle day, Jessica

What happens when your body says “no” to your best-laid business plans? In this raw and reflective episode, Jessica shares the story of having to cancel her biggest event due to illness—and how it became the catalyst for building a more sustainable business. If you’ve ever felt like a setback derailed everything, this episode will help you redefine success and rebuild with your health at the center.

💡 In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• How to navigate the grief and guilt of canceling a major business event due to chronic illness

• The four key phases of rebuilding after a setback (Reality Check, Reset, Rebuild, and Resilience)

• How to apply the 4Ps Framework (Prioritize, Pace, Pivot, Peace) to recover and rebuild

• Why traditional business models often fail those with unpredictable energy—and what to do instead

• A simple, powerful journaling exercise to clarify your next sustainable steps

✍️ Gentle Reflection Prompt

Rebuilding after a setback? Try this: Create a “Sustainable Rebuild Snapshot” by dividing a page into four parts:

1. Prioritize: List your current health non-negotiables

2. Pace: Define your honest energy rhythm right now

3. Pivot: Identify one unsustainable part of your old business model and a possible alternative

4. Peace: Write a new success definition that aligns with both your ambition and your health

Your setback isn’t the end of your story—it might be the beginning of a more sustainable, aligned chapter.

🔗 Mentioned Episodes

• Episode 5: Tired of Just Surviving? How to Build a Business That Lets You Thrive
• Episode 6: How to Know If You’re Making the Right Business Decision—Especially When You Have Chronic Illness
• Episode 7: You’re Not Broken: Why Your Body Is the Blueprint for a Sustainable Business
• Episode 8: AGILE for Chronic Illness: A No-Hustle Productivity Framework
• Episode 9: Business Planning with Chronic Illness: A Sustainable Approach

🛠️ Resources & Links

➡️ Follow my journey on YouTube for behind-the-scenes insights. (@chronicillnessceo) ➡️ Need personalized support? Book a Sustainable CEO Strategy Day and let’s design a business that works with your body, not against it. ➡️ Learn more about the Sustainable Success Framework at ChronicIllnessCEO.com to start building your energy-conscious business today.

And if this message resonates with you, please leave a rating and review—it helps other entrepreneurs with chronic illness find this podcast and join our cozy community.

📬 Stay Cozy & Connected

Want weekly encouragement in your inbox? Subscribe to the CICEO Newsletter for behind-the-scenes stories, podcast insights, and business strategy—served cozy, not corporate.

Wishing you a gentle day, Jessica

If you’ve ever bought a planner with big hopes—only to abandon it after a few weeks (or months) when your health shifted—this episode is for you. Jessica shares how she reimagined business planning through a gentle, garden-inspired approach that honors energy variability, not rigid timelines. It’s a beautifully sustainable alternative to traditional planning, crafted for chronic illness entrepreneurs who are tired of feeling behind.

💡 In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• Why traditional planning methods often fail entrepreneurs with chronic illness
• How to apply a garden-inspired approach to business planning
• The power of flexible objectives instead of rigid SMART goals
• How to track your energy and wins using a two-planner system
• A practical way to design monthly sprints that support your body, not fight it

✍️ Gentle Reflection Prompt

Ready to cultivate a new approach to business planning? Try this: Create a “Garden Dream Page” with three columns:

1. How I Want to Feel
2. What Drains Me
3. What Energizes Me

Just observe. No pressure to fix—just notice the patterns your body is already showing you.

Your planner shouldn’t be a weapon of shame—it should be a mirror of what matters most to you and a map that adjusts as your seasons shift.

🔗 Mentioned Episodes

• Episode 5: Tired of Just Surviving? How to Build a Business That Lets You Thrive
• Episode 6: How to Know If You’re Making the Right Business Decision—Especially When You Have Chronic Illness
• Episode 7: You’re Not Broken: Why Your Body Is the Blueprint for a Sustainable Business
• Episode 8: AGILE for Chronic Illness: A No-Hustle Productivity Framework

🛠️ Resources & Links

➡️ Follow my journey on YouTube for behind-the-scenes insights. (@chronicillnessceo) ➡️ Need personalized support? Book a Sustainable CEO Strategy Day and let’s design a business that works with your body, not against it. ➡️ Learn more about the Sustainable Success Framework at ChronicIllnessCEO.com to start building your energy-conscious business today.

And if this message resonates with you, please leave a rating and review—it helps other entrepreneurs with chronic illness find this podcast and join our cozy community.

📬 Stay Cozy & Connected

Want weekly encouragement in your inbox? Subscribe to the CICEO Newsletter for behind-the-scenes stories, podcast insights, and business strategy—served cozy, not corporate.

Wishing you a gentle day, Jessica

Ever felt like your to-do list is a personal failure report? In this episode, Jessica shares a powerful mindset shift that transformed how she thinks about productivity. Inspired by AGILE project management and filtered through the lens of chronic illness, this episode explores how redefining “effort” can help you plan, pace, and thrive—without guilt. If you’re tired of pushing through and ready for a more sustainable way of working, this one's for you.

💡 In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• How redefining productivity through effort (not just hours or output) can support your energy reality
• Four factors to assess effort: knowledge, experience, time, and energy
• How to apply AGILE’s sprint mindset to your chronic illness business
• Why traditional SOPs and systems often fail us—and how to personalize your workflow
• How Jessica used this method to plan and launch the CICEO podcast sustainably

✍️ Gentle Reflection Prompt

Jessica shares an "Effort Audit" exercise. For a few days, track your tasks using these four questions:

1. Do I already know how to do this?
2. Have I done this before?
3. How long will this realistically take, including recovery?
4. What’s the energy cost—was it draining or energizing?

Look for patterns. What might you shift next week based on this intel?

Remember you're not failing when you rest and recover. You're managing your energy like a strategist—and that’s a strength, not a shortcoming.

🔗 Mentioned Episodes

• Episode 5: Tired of Just Surviving? How to Build a Business That Lets You Thrive
• Episode 6: How to Know If You’re Making the Right Business Decision—Especially When You Have Chronic Illness
• Episode 7: You’re Not Broken: Why Your Body Is the Blueprint for a Sustainable Business

🛠️ Resources & Links

➡️ Follow my journey on YouTube for behind-the-scenes insights. (@chronicillnessceo) ➡️ Need personalized support? Book a Sustainable CEO Strategy Day and let’s design a business that works with your body, not against it. ➡️ Learn more about the Sustainable Success Framework at ChronicIllnessCEO.com to start building your energy-conscious business today.

And if this message resonates with you, please leave a rating and review—it helps other entrepreneurs with chronic illness find this podcast and join our cozy community.

📬 Stay Cozy & Connected

Want weekly encouragement in your inbox? Subscribe to the CICEO Newsletter for behind-the-scenes stories, podcast insights, and business strategy—served cozy, not corporate.

Wishing you a gentle day, Jessica

If you’ve ever looked at your body and thought, “Why can’t you just cooperate?”—this episode is for you. Jessica shares how she went from battling her chronic illness to building a business because of it. You’ll learn how listening to your body’s signals can help you design a business that’s sustainable, aligned, and surprisingly effective. Because maybe... you're not broken at all.

💡 In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• Why productivity frameworks often fail people with chronic illness
• The game-changing shift from seeing your body as an enemy to a business partner
• How Jessica redesigned her systems, schedule, and goals around her natural energy patterns
• Practical ways to identify what fuels you vs. what drains you

✍️ Gentle Reflection Prompt

This week, Jess invites you to keep a Body Business Log by noticing when you feel most energized, what drains you, and what fuels you. This isn’t about fixing anything, yet. It’s about listening.

When you’re at war with your body, nobody wins. But when you build with it? That’s where thriving begins.

🔗 Mentioned Episodes

• Episode 5: Tired of Just Surviving? How to Build a Business That Lets You Thrive
• Episode 6: How to Know If You’re Making the Right Business Decision—Especially When You Have Chronic Illness
• Episode 8: AGILE for Chronic Illness: A No-Hustle Productivity Framework

🛠️ Resources & Links

➡️ Follow my journey on YouTube for behind-the-scenes insights. (@chronicillnessceo) ➡️ Need personalized support? Book a Sustainable CEO Strategy Day and let’s design a business that works with your body, not against it. ➡️ Learn more about the Sustainable Success Framework at ChronicIllnessCEO.com to start building your energy-conscious business today.

And if this message resonates with you, please leave a rating and review—it helps other entrepreneurs with chronic illness find this podcast and join our cozy community.

📬 Stay Cozy & Connected

Want weekly encouragement in your inbox? Subscribe to the CICEO Newsletter for behind-the-scenes stories, podcast insights, and business strategy—served cozy, not corporate.

Wishing you a gentle day, Jessica

Ever felt like you're chasing every new business strategy hoping this one will finally work—only to end up more exhausted and discouraged? In this episode, Jessica introduces the Right Strategy, Right Time™ framework, a decision-making tool designed specifically for entrepreneurs with chronic illness. Learn how to choose the best strategies based on your energy, goals, and business stage—so you can stop hustling and start thriving.

💡 In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• How to stop comparing yourself to others and start making business decisions that align with your actual energy capacity
• The 3 key questions of the Right Strategy, Right Time™ framework that will help you evaluate any business decision
• Why understanding your current stage on the Sustainable CEO Pathway is essential for choosing the right strategy
• How this framework fits beautifully with the 4Ps Ops Plan: Prioritize, Pace, Pivot, and Peace
• A real-life example of how Jess chose podcasting over courses or memberships based on her capacity—and how that changed everything

🧰 Frameworks or Tools Mentioned

• Right Strategy, Right Time™
• Sustainable CEO Pathway (Survive → Stabilize → Strengthen → Scale → Thrive)
• 4Ps Ops Plan: Prioritize, Pace, Pivot, Peace

✍️ Gentle Reflection Prompt

Ready to get strategic with your energy? This week, Jess invites you to run one business idea through the Right Strategy, Right Time™ framework by asking:

1. Does this align with my current capacity and energy levels?
2. Does this move me closer to my most important goals right now?
3. Is this the most effective use of my resources at this stage?

Be radically honest. This isn’t about killing your dreams—it’s about timing them right.

You don’t have to do all the things—you just need to do the right things, at the right time, for you.

🔗 Mentioned Episodes

• Episode 5: Tired of Just Surviving? How to Build a Business That Lets You Thrive
• Episode 7: You’re Not Broken: Why Your Body Is the Blueprint for a Sustainable Business

🛠️ Resources & Links

➡️ Follow my journey on YouTube for behind-the-scenes insights. (@chronicillnessceo) ➡️ Need personalized support? Book a Sustainable CEO Strategy Day and let’s design a business that works with your body, not against it. ➡️ Learn more about the Sustainable Success Framework at ChronicIllnessCEO.com to start building your energy-conscious business today.

And if this message resonates with you, please leave a rating and review—it helps other entrepreneurs with chronic illness find this podcast and join our cozy community.

📬 Stay Cozy & Connected

Want weekly encouragement in your inbox? Subscribe to the CICEO Newsletter for behind-the-scenes stories, podcast insights, and business strategy—served cozy, not corporate.

Wishing you a gentle day, Jessica

Hey friend,

Are you constantly checking work messages during doctor’s appointments? Rearranging your entire schedule—again—to accommodate everyone else’s needs? Living in the space between one flare-up and the next, trying to prove that yes, you can still do this, you can still keep up?

If you’re nodding along, you might be stuck in survival mode. And here’s the thing—it’s not the kind of survival mode you might think.

In this episode, we’re having an honest conversation about what it really means to break free from survival mode and start building a business that supports your health, not one that constantly drains it. I’ll share the exact 4P Framework that has helped me—and so many other entrepreneurs—move from crisis mode to creating a business that actually lets you thrive.

So, grab your heating pad, your cozy blanket, and maybe some tissues because today, we’re dreaming again.

Remember, small changes over time lead to sustainable success.

P.S. Ready to break free from survival mode? I've got three ways you can take action after this episode: ➡️ Follow my journey on 📺 YouTube for behind-the-scenes insights. (@chronicillnessceo) ➡️ Need personalized support? 🗓 Book a Sustainable CEO Strategy Day and let’s design a business that works with your body, not against it. ➡️ Learn more about the Sustainable Success Framework at ChronicIllnessCEO.com to start building your energy-conscious business today.

Next Week on the Podcast:

I’ll share a powerful decision-making framework that helps you choose which business strategies are worth your precious energy right now—and which ones can wait for a different season. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by all the “shoulds” in business, this one’s for you!

🔔 Hit subscribe so you don’t miss it. 🎧